The present invention relates to an inked ribbon cartridge for a calculating or other office machine, comprising a container of substantially parallelepipedal form having in a first longer side thereof a recess defining two lateral arms of the container, an inked ribbon closed in a loop disposed inside the container and extending therein between an inking roller and a ribbon tensioning element, the ribbon having a substantially rectilinear portion which emerges from the lateral arms and spans the recess, parallel to the said larger side. Such a cartridge will be referred to as of the type defined.
A cartridge of the type defined is known in which a plurality of rollers mounted rotatably on the container guide the inked ribbon along a predetermined path. One of the rollers, disposed in one corner of the container, effects the transport or drive of the ribbon and the inking roller is mounted rotatably between two of the guide rollers along the path of the ribbon. The ribbon tensioning element is disposed between the driving roller and the inking roller and operates in a loop of the ribbon formed parallel to the larger side of the container. This cartridge has the disadvantage of having the inking roller and the driving roller for the ribbon arranged separated and on opposite sides with respect to the container. Moreover, in order to permit the formation of the loop around the ribbon tensioning element, the dimensions of the cartridge must be rather large and the cartridge itself thus becomes cumbersome.